Abstract
Accurate assessment of surface suspended sediment concentration (SSSC) in estuary is essential to address several important issues: erosion, water pollution, human health risks, etc. In this study, an empirical cubic retrieval model was developed for the retrieval of SSSC from Yellow River Estuary. Based on sediments and seawater collected from the Yellow River and southeastern Laizhou Bay, SSSC conditions were reproduced in the laboratory at increasing concentrations within a range common to field observations. Continuous spectrum measurements of the various SSSCs ranging from 1 to 5700 mg/l were carried out using an AvaField-3 spectrometer. The results indicated the good correlation between water SSSC and spectral reflectance (Rrs) was obtained in the spectral range of 726–900 nm. At SSSC greater than 2700 mg/L, the 740–900 nm spectral range was less susceptible to the effects of spectral reflectance saturation and more suitable for retrieval of high sediment concentrations. The best correlations were obtained for the reflectance ratio of 820 nm to 490 nm. Informed by the correlation between Rrs and SSSC, a retrieval model was developed (R2 = 0.992). The novel cubic model, which used the ratio of a near-infrared (NIR) band (740–900 nm) to a visible band (400–600 nm) as factors, provided robust quantification of high SSSC water samples. Two high SSSC centers, with an order of 103 mg/l, were found in the inversion results around the abandoned Diaokou River mouth, the present Yellow River mouth to the abandoned Qingshuigou River mouth. There was little sediment exchange between the two high SSSC centers due to the directions of the residual currents and vertical mixing.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aranuvachapun S, Walling D E, 1988. Landsat-MSS radiance as a measure of suspended sediment in the Lower Yellow River (Hwang Ho). Remote Sensing of Environment, 25(2): 145–165. doi: 10.1016/0034-4257(88)90098-3
Bi N S, Yang Z S, Wang H J et al., 2010. Sediment dispersion pattern off the present Huanghe (Yellow River) subdelta and its dynamic mechanism during normal river discharge period. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 86(3): 352–362. doi: 10.1016/j.ecss.2009.06.005
Chen J, Cui T W, Qiu Z F et al., 2014. A three-band semi-analytical model for deriving total suspended sediment concentration from HJ-1A/CCD data in turbid coastal waters. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, 93: 1–13. doi: 10.1016/j.isprsjprs.2014.02.011
Doxaran D, Froidefond J M, Castaing P, 2002. A reflectance band ratio used to estimate suspended matter concentrations in sediment-dominated coastal waters. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 23(23): 5079–5085. doi: 10.1080/0143116021000009912
Doxaran D, Froidefond J M, Castaing P, 2003. Remote-sensing reflectance of turbid sediment-dominated waters. Reduction of sediment type variations and changing illumination conditions effects by use of reflectance ratios. Applied Optics, 42(15): 2623–2634. doi: 10.1364/AO.42.002623
Doxaran D, Froidefond J M, Castaing P et al., 2009. Dynamics of the turbidity maximum zone in a macrotidal estuary (the Gironde, France): observations from field and MODIS satellite data. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 81(3): 321–332. doi: 10.1016/j.ecss.2008.11.013
Doxaran D, Lamquin N, Park Y J et al., 2014. Retrieval of the seawater reflectance for suspended solids monitoring in the East China Sea using MODIS, MERIS and GOCI satellite data. Remote Sensing of Environment, 146: 36–48. doi: 10.1016/j.rse.2013.06.020
Espinoza Villar R, Martinez J M, Le Texier M et al., 2013. A study of sediment transport in the Madeira River, Brazil, using MODIS remote-sensing images. Journal of South American Earth Sciences, 44: 45–54. doi: 10.1016/j.jsames.2012.11.006
Gao X L, Zhou F X, Chen C T A et al., 2015. Trace metals in the suspended particulate matter of the Yellow River (Huanghe) Estuary: concentrations, potential mobility, contamination assessment and the fluxes into the Bohai Sea. Continental Shelf Research, 104: 25–36. doi: 10.1016/j.csr.2015.05.005
Han Z, Jin Y Q, Yun C X, 2006. Suspended sediment concentrations in the Yangtze River estuary retrieved from the CMODIS data. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 27(19): 4329–4336. doi: 10.1080/01431160600658164
Hu B Q, Li J, Bi N S et al., 2015. Seasonal variability and flux of particulate trace elements from the Yellow River: impacts of the anthropogenic flood event. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 91(1): 35–44. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2014.12.030
Liu Yanxia, Huang Haijun, Yang Xiaoyang, 2013. The transportation and deposition of suspended sediment and its dynamic mechanism analysis based on Landsat images in the Laizhou Bay. Acta Oceanologica Sinica, 35(6): 43–53. (in Chinese)
Long C M, Pavelsky T M, 2013. Remote sensing of suspended sediment concentration and hydrologic connectivity in a complex wetland environment. Remote Sensing of Environment, 129: 197–209. doi: 10.1016/j.rse.2012.10.019
Lu J, Qiao F L, Wang X H et al., 2011. A numerical study of transport dynamics and seasonal variability of the Yellow River sediment in the Bohai and Yellow seas. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 95(1): 39–51. doi: 10.1016/j.ecss.2011.08.001
Martinez J M, Guyot J L, Filizola N et al., 2009. Increase in suspended sediment discharge of the Amazon River assessed by monitoring network and satellite data. Catena, 79(3): 257–264. doi: 10.1016/j.catena.2009.05.011
Min J E, Ryu J H, Lee S et al., 2012. Monitoring of suspended sediment variation using Landsat and MODIS in the Saemangeum coastal area of Korea. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 64(2): 382–390. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2011.10.025
Qiao S Q, Shi X F, Zhu A M et al., 2010. Distribution and transport of suspended sediments off the Yellow River (Huanghe) mouth and the nearby Bohai Sea. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 86(3): 337–344. doi: 10.1016/j.ecss.2009.07.019
Ramakrishnan D, Bharti R, Das M, 2013. A technique for estimation of suspended sediment concentration in very high turbid coastal waters: an investigation from Gulf of Cambay, India. Marine Geology, 346: 256–261. doi: 10.1016/j.margeo.2013.10.001
Ritchie J C, Zimba P V, Everitt J H, 2003. Remote sensing techniques to assess water quality. Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing, 69(6): 695–704. doi: 10.14358/PERS.69.6.695.
Robert E, Grippa M, Kergoat L et al., 2016. Monitoring water turbidity and surface suspended sediment concentration of the Bagre Reservoir (Burkina Faso) using MODIS and field reflectance data. International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation, 52: 243–251. doi: 10.1016/j.jag.2016.06.016
Shen F, Zhou Y X, Li J F et al., 2013. Remotely sensed variability of the suspended sediment concentration and its response to decreased river discharge in the Yangtze estuary and adjacent coast. Continental Shelf Research, 69: 52–61. doi: 10.1016/j.csr.2013.09.002
Shi K, Zhang Y L, Zhu G W et al., 2015. Long-term remote monitoring of total suspended matter concentration in Lake Taihu using 250 m MODIS-Aqua data. Remote Sensing of Environment, 164: 43–56. doi: 10.1016/j.rse.2015.02.029
Topliss B J, Almos C L, Hill P R, 1990. Algorithms for remote sensing of high concentration, inorganic suspended sediment. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 11(6): 947–966. doi: 10.1080/01431169008955069
Toublanc F, Brenon I, Coulombier T, 2016. Formation and structure of the turbidity maximum in the macrotidal Charente estuary (France): influence of fluvial and tidal forcing. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 169: 1–14. doi: 10.1016/j.ecss.2015.11.019
Wang F, Zhou B, Xu J M et al., 2009. Application of neural network and MODIS 250m imagery for estimating suspended sediments concentration in Hangzhou Bay, China. Environmental Geology, 56(6): 1093–1101. doi: 10.1007/s00254-008-1209-0
Wang H J, Yang Z S, Saito Y et al., 2007. Stepwise decreases of the Huanghe (Yellow River) sediment load (1950–2005): impacts of climate change and human activities. Global and Planetary Change, 57(3–4): 331–354. doi: 10.1016/j.gloplacha.2007.01.003.
Wang J J, Lu X X, 2010. Estimation of suspended sediment concentrations using Terra MODIS: an example from the Lower Yangtze River, China. Science of the Total Environment, 408(5): 1131–1138. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2009.11.057
Wang S, Fu B J, Liang W et al., 2017. Driving forces of changes in the water and sediment relationship in the Yellow River. Science of the Total Environment, 576: 453–461. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.10.124
Wass P D, Marks S D, Finch J W et al., 1997. Monitoring and preliminary interpretation of in-river turbidity and remote sensed imagery for suspended sediment transport studies in the Humber catchment. Science of the Total Environment, 194–195: 263–283. doi: 10.1016/S0048-9697(96)05370-3
Wiseman W J, Fan Y B, Bornhold B D et al., 1986. Suspended sediment advection by tidal currents off the Huanghe (Yellow River) delta. Geo-Marine Letters, 6(2): 107–113. doi: 10.1007/BF02281646.
Xu B C, Yang D S, Burnett W C et al., 2016. Artificial water sediment regulation scheme influences morphology, hydrodynamics and nutrient behavior in the Yellow River estuary. Journal of Hydrology, 539: 102–112. doi: 10.1016/j.jhydrol.2016.05.024
Yang Z S, Ji Y J, Bi N S et al., 2011. Sediment transport off the Huanghe (Yellow River) delta and in the adjacent Bohai Sea in winter and seasonal comparison. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 93(3): 173–181. doi: 10.1016/j.ecss.2010.06.005
Zhang M W, Tang J W, Dong Q et al., 2010. Retrieval of total suspended matter concentration in the Yellow and East China Seas from MODIS imagery. Remote Sensing of Environment, 114(2): 392–403. doi: 10.1016/j.rse.2009.09.016
Zhang M W, Dong Q, Cui T W et al., 2014. Suspended sediment monitoring and assessment for Yellow River estuary from Landsat TM and ETM + imagery. Remote Sensing of Environment, 146: 136–147. doi: 10.1016/j.rse.2013.09.033
Zheng Z B, Ren J L, Li Y M et al., 2016. Remote sensing of diffuse attenuation coefficient patterns from Landsat 8 OLI imagery of turbid inland waters: a case study of Dongting Lake. Science of the Total Environment, 573: 39–54. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.08.019
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Foundation item: Under the auspices of National Key R&D Program of China (No. 2017YFC0505902), Project of the Cultivation Plan of Superior Discipline Talent Teams of Universities in Shandong Province, National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41471005, 41271016)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Zhan, C., Yu, J., Wang, Q. et al. Remote sensing retrieval of surface suspended sediment concentration in the Yellow River Estuary. Chin. Geogr. Sci. 27, 934–947 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11769-017-0921-7
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11769-017-0921-7